New Orleans' only Bachelor of Design professional degree program launches at Loyola

Beginning this fall, Loyola University New Orleans will offer a new Bachelor of Design professional degree program—the only four-year program of its kind in the city. The program aims to best prepare students for the growing—and increasingly diverse—field of design. Students in that program are already taking advantage of new design studios, design labs and other spaces tailored to their needs in the recently renovated Monroe Hall on the university’s main campus.

Loyola’s Bachelor of Design—a 126-credit hour program—prepares students for a multitude of careers in the design field ranging from interactive designers, motion graphics designers, or print and marketing designers. Loyola graduates can work at advertising agencies such as Peter Mayer, design studios like Line 58 or as in-house designers for major sports teams such as the New Orleans Saints.

What’s special about Loyola’s Bachelor of Design professional degree program is its emphasis on the Jesuit ideals and the role of design in society. “Design is an indicator of cultural thinking and is a catalyst for social, cultural and political change. Our aim is to produce a cohort of creative, critical thinkers who can apply their design skills and conceptual thinking in any chosen design forum—we’re also trying to make the world a better place through design,” said Daniela Marx, associate professor of graphic design and chair of the new program. “Design is a powerful medium. Students will learn the impact of combining images and text and how to use them to communicate a particular message,” she said.

The new program includes an ethics and contracts class where students will learn about the business side of design, copyright issues and how to prepare contracts with clients. These topics will help prepare students to work as freelancers or even to start their own design firm. Students will be required to work in an internship, locally, nationally or internationally, during the school year or during the summer, where they will work and learn from a professional designer. Another new course offering is Design Topics, which will cover emerging issues and ideas in design. In a Design Topics course, students might design an app in partnership with the biology department, become proficient in hand-lettering or learn the design of wayfinding systems, for example.

Along with the new classes, students will benefit from new facilities in Monroe Hall, including three design studios, a screen printing lab, two teaching computer labs and one student lab all equipped with up-to-date technology. Not only do students create work inside their studio, but student creativity overflows to the hallways. For example, an “Inspiration Wall” in one of the main corridors acts as an exhibit of photos, quotes and drawings from the students’ favorite designers and artists.

The new design facilities are part of Loyola’s overall Monroe Hall renovation, which began in 2012. The completion of the interior construction of the building—set for December 2014—will result in a complete transformation of Loyola’s signature teaching facilities, creative spaces and science laboratories, including a new rooftop greenhouse.